Best Kept Secrets(67)

vibrating voice.

He began to pray with loud earnestness. Alex had the

wildest impulse to giggle. Merle Graham had seen to it that

she was raised with traditional Protestant beliefs. They had

attended church regularly. Though she had never embraced

the fundamentalist dogma her grandmother adhered to, Alex's

Christian faith was well cemented.



"Please, Reverend Plummet," she interrupted when his

prayer extended into overtime, "I've had a very long day.

Could we get to the point of your visit, please?"

He looked rather piqued over her interruption, but said with a mysterious air, "I can assist you with your investigation

of Minton Enterprises."

She was stunned. She had never expected him to be connected

in any way to her investigation. She reminded herself,

however, to proceed with caution. She was, after all, extremely

skeptical. What deep, dark secrets could this weird

little man know about Celina, Reede Lambert, or the Mintons?

Ministers were privy to confidences, but experience had

taught her that professional ethics usually prevented them

from revealing any confessions. They strictly abided by the

rules of privileged information, and only imparted it in life-threatening

situations.

It didn't seem likely that either Angus or Junior would bare

his soul to a mousy little man like Plummet. Based wholly

on outward appearance, he would have a minimal amount of

influence with the Almighty. The thought of Reede Lambert

confessing a sin was preposterous.

She responded with a professional detachment that Greg

Harper would have been proud of: "Oh, really? How can

you do that? Did you know my mother?"

"Unfortunately, no. But I can speed along your investigation

just the same. We--my congregation of saints and I--believe

that you're on our side. And our side is God's side.''

"Th-thank you," she stammered, hoping that was the

correct response.

Obviously, it was. It earned a soft amen from Mrs. Plummet,

who had been silently praying all this time.

"Reverend Plummet," Alex said uncertainly, "I'm not

sure you understand. I'm here at the behest of the district

attorney's office to--"

"The Lord uses people as his holy instruments."

"--to investigate the murder of my mother, which occurred

here in Purcell twenty-five years ago."



"God be praised . . . that this wrong . . . will soon be

set right!" He shook his fists heavenward.

Alex was flabbergasted. She gave a nervous laugh. "Yes,

well, I hope so, too. But I fail to see how my investigation

concerns you and your ministry. Do you have inside knowledge

of the crime?"

"Oh, that I did, Miss Gaither," Plummet wailed. "Oh,

that I did, so that we could speed along God's work and

punish the iniquitous."

"The iniquitous?"

"Sinners!" he shouted fervently. "Those who would corrupt

this town and all the innocent children of God living

here. They want to build Satan's playground, fill the precious

veins of our children with narcotics, their sweet mouths with foul liquor, their fertile little minds with carnality."

From the corner of her eye, Alex glanced at Mrs. Plummet,

who sat with her head bowed, her hands folded in her lap,

her knees and ankles decorously pressed together, as though

they had been glued that way.

"Are you referring to Purcell Downs?" Alex asked tentatively.

Just as she had feared, the very words opened up a wellspring

of evangelical fervor. Prophecies came spewing out

of the preacher's mouth like a fountain run amok. Alex endured

a sermon on the evils of horserace gambling and all

the ungodly elements that accompanied it. But when Plummet

began to tout her as a missionary sent to Purcell to vanquish

the sons of Satan, she felt compelled to bring the fiery sermon

to a halt.

"Reverend Plummet, please." After several attempted interruptions,

he stopped speaking and looked at her blankly.

She licked her lips anxiously, not wanting to offend him, but

wanting to make herself explicitly clear.

"I have absolutely nothing to do with whether or not Minton

Enterprises is granted a gambling license. The fact is that

they've already been approved by the racing commission. All

that remains are the formalities."



"But the Mintons are under investigation for murder."

Choosing her words carefully, and omitting any direct reference

to the Mintons, she said, "If enough evidence or

probable cause is found as a result of my investigation, the

case could be brought before the grand jury. It would be up

to it to bring forth an indictment. In any instance, the parties

involved are to be presumed innocent until proven guilty, in

accordance with our Constitution."